With autumn well and truly here (and really turning down the temperature this week), we wanted to take a look at what’s fresh, flavour-packed & great to eat at this time of year.
We love to make the most of seasonal produce, whether it’s by heroing it in meals, using it to complement a meal, or prepping it so that we can lock in nutrition and flavour for use in the coming months when it’s no longer available from the markets.
WHY EAT SEASONALLY?
There are a few things that make eating seasonal produce beneficial, and perhaps more than anything else, it comes down to quality, flavour, price and nutritional value.
Quality
When fruit and veg is in-season, you’ll often see an abundance of it available and the quality is consistently good thanks to the produce being able to ripen on the plant as it is meant to, then harvested, transported and put on shelves for us to buy & eat. Minimal time from farm to table, which means the flavour & nutritional value is at its best when you pick it up in-store.
Produce that is not in season, is often harvested before ripening, cooled to slow the ripening process, and then stored before transport and sale. While it is possible to still get good produce via this method, there is more time from farm to table, and this means that the nutritional value can lose some of its punch.
Flavour
The quality and short time from farm to plate contributes considerably to the produce packing a flavour punch. Think about it, when you pick strawberries or sugar snap peas fresh from the garden, they always taste amazing and it’s difficult to not eat them all before they can make it to the kitchen. It’s because they spend more time ripening in the sun and can soak in those nutrients that will only end up being more beneficial when you eat them! Think colour, crunch, and great texture.
WHAT’S IN SEASON?
Autumn is the season of dark leafy greens, flavourful root veggies and an array of colourful fruits that are nothing but delicious.
Check out the list below for the majority of fruit & veg that really come alive in the Aussie Autumn.
VEGETABLES
- Beans
- Bok Choy
- Broccoli
- Brussels sprouts
- Cabbage
- Capsicums
- Carrots (late season)
- Cauliflower
- Celery (late season)
- Celeriac (late season)
- Chestnuts
- Cucumbers (early season)
- Eggplant
- Eschallots
- Fennel
- Kale
- Leeks
- Lettuce (early season)
- Mushrooms
- Okra
- Onions
- Parsnips (late season)
- Potatoes
- Pumpkin
- Silverbeet
- Spinach
- Sweetcorn
- Sweet Potato (late season)
- Swiss chard
- Tomatoes
- Turnips
- Watercress
- Witlof (early season)
- Zucchini (early season)
FRUIT
- Apples
- Avocados
- Bananas
- Custard Apples
- Dates
- Dragon Fruit
- Figs
- Finger limes
- Grapes
- Guava
- Kiwifruit
- Lemons (late season)
- Limes
- Mandarins - Imperial
- Mangosteens
- Nashi Pears
- Oranges - Valencia, Navel
- Passionfruit
- Papaw
- Pears
- Passionfruit
- Persimmons
- Plums (early season)
- Pomegranates
- Quinces
- Rhubarb (late season)
- Tamarillo